Gluten-free bread....gross!

I couldn't find a gluten free forum so I posted this here. I was suspecting recently I might be wheat sensitive. Since I love sandwiches, I decided to try a gluten/wheat free bread for the first time. The brand was Franz Bakehouse 9-grain gluten-free bread. And at $5.98 a loaf at Walmart.
I had been doing a search for GF bread recipes to make my own, but noticed they all include xanthan gum as an ingredient. I guess it must be used to replace the missing gluten in the bread, acting as a binder. Having tried xanthan gum in low carb cooking, I knew it has a nasty slimy texture to it. Well so did this bread! Yuck. It was absolutely tasteless, but the worst thing was the texture. I could not even manage swallowing the first bite of my sandwich. The whole loaf and most of the sandwich went down the garbage disposal. What a waste of six bucks.
So can anyone recommend a better brand - something that doesn't taste like styrofoam and vaseline mixed together?

If you think you are wheat sensitive, you might try an elimination diet where you eliminate certain foods then add them back one at a time. I wouldn't want to eliminate gluten if I didn't need to and gluten is more than wheat. You can get wheat-free bread that isn't gluten free.

I wish you luck though because any bread like product I've tasted that is gluten free is pretty gross.

I am gluten intolerant (not medically diagnosed, definitely not celiac, but through an elimination diet I've established that gluten definitely causes me huge GI issues). I figured this out in the late 90s and I can categorically state that more than 95% of all GF breads you buy are simply horrible and NONE of them are edible without being toasted. The only brand that I've found that's palatable is Whole Foods Market in house variety (the prairie bread, in particular).

If you don't have a Whole Foods market available try going into a very, very good health food store that has a comprehensive selection of GF foods and ask for their recommendations. Finally, IMO the GF varieties of Van's waffles are really good and make a tolerable bread substitute -- well, at least for something like peanut butter and jelly or toasted with butter.

I second what nelie said! I did GF for a year before having testing done that narrowed the culprit down to wheat, and I'm happy that I could expand my diet back a bit with that knowledge.

I've tried many wheat-free breads and won't eat most of them. I've gotten used to a mainly bread-less diet, but every once awhile it's nice to have at least an open-faced sandwich. (GF breads tend to be higher calorie too, FYI.) Anyway, I can offer two recommendations that I like:

1) Millet-Rice bread by Food for Life. Whole Foods has it in the freezer for usually $6.50 a loaf (ouch). Trader Joe's also sells this brand for maybe $5, but a different type (just rice, I think. I've never enjoyed pure rice flour breads.) Edit to add -- I wouldn't say this is very "bread-like" - it's definitely a bit heavy. I've come to really like it for what it is, not because it's a great substitute for normal bread. (Sort of like how if try to eat carob as a chocolate substitute, it falls pretty short -- but you can still appreciate carob for what it is, on its own.)

2) Make your own bread from almond butter and eggs. You can google it, but here's one link: http://www.naturallysavvy.com/recipe...d-butter-bread . I think this recipe is some kind of baking sorcery. Given the ingredient list, it confounds me that you actually get a real bread-like texture with crumb and everything. It tastes a bit almond-y. I've always thought adding cinnamon and a touch of sweetener would make for something like a cinnamon-swirl bread. (Good but not all-purpose. Also, this is definitely a higher-calorie (though lower carb) option.)

I know other people who really enjoy Udi's bread for sandwiches -- I think it's passable, but not something I'd buy for myself. I tried using it for GF stuffing at Thanksgiving this past year -- didn't think it passed the texture test for that.

Good luck! The old adage about kissing a lot of frogs to find a prince comes to mind. You might have to eat a lot of froggy bread but you'll find something that works for you.

THIS is my favorite recipe for gluten free bread. It is soooo yummy! It uses flaxseed and chia seeds instead of xantham gum and that makes an enormous difference in taste and texture. The store brands I've tried have all had rice flour and xanthan gum, both of which make for a very nasty bread, imo.

__________________"I want to be improbable, beautiful, and afraid
of nothing, as though I had wings." (Mary Oliver)

Thanks everyone for answering so fast. I didn't know you could be wheat sensitive but not gluten sensitive. (or vice-versa) I have several symptoms and it's pointing to possible celiac disease - which means I shouldn't be eating wheat OR gluten. Am I right on this? Of course, I'm not a Dr. and need to tell him my symptoms. I'm getting a screening colonoscopy next week, just by coincidence, but my understanding is that Celiac disease is a disease of the small intestine, not the colon. darn, i don't know if I can give up real bread. haha. But in the past when I was doing low carb and eliminating all grains - my symptoms did seem to subside. Thanks for all the good suggestions. I appreciate it.

Glutino is the bread I eat. I tried Presidents Choice GF bread and spat it out. It was pure rice texture..on a bread. I get its made from rice but it was just dried rice textured it was too weird for a bread. But Glutino I find good

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover a baking pan with lightly greased parchment paper.
Combine dry ingredients, then add wet ingredients. Mix quickly and immediately spread over the parchment paper as evenly as you can. Bake in the oven for about 20-30 minutes and then cut with a pizza cutter.

It's very much a rustic, dense bread, but certainly not cardboard. (If you like your bread sweeter, I highly recommend tossing in a 2-3 tablespoons of sugar or sugar substitute.) My non-GF parents both like it. Careful though - this is SUPER filling and has lots of fiber, so one small slice is plenty for a sandwich.
You can also adjust the ratios of the main ingredients as long as your dough turns out an OK consistency. I think I usually use less oil, fewer eggs, and more ground flaxseed.

I like Rudi's multigrain (with the orange label). Although, it is high in calories (90 a slice). I am trying Paleo almond (60 cals) and coconut bread (40 cals). The almond one tastes "weird" as a hotdog bun, but worked great for a sloppy joe. I am going to try it as a real sandwich tomorrow. I have not tried the coconut yet.